Elaina Areida
by wangwang
Summary: Elaina Areida was given the gift of perfection, but her royal existance is anything from flawless....arg...i don't feel like writing anymore...read it and see; waiting for 10 reviews before updating
1. Disclaimer

I do not own Ella Enchanted; Gail Carson Levine does. I just love the story; don't we all? Any characters from the book are not mine...but any new ones are. 


	2. Default Chapter

Elaina Areida ~Prologue~  
  
It was the crying that made me come to. The screeching, the squealing, the shrieking; the most wonderful sound in the world. I opened my eyes.  
  
"Oh, sweet, she's beautiful." Mandy breathed. She wrapped the infant in pink velvet and handed her to me.  
  
"Beautiful." I echoed. And she was. Huge, sparkling green eyes, rosy red lips, delicate features. My first child...  
  
"What shall you name her, lady?" Mandy chuckled amusingly, knowing I was bound to the "Eleanor" chain. But maybe...  
  
"Mandy," I started, "I like 'Elaina'. Perhaps this once..."  
  
"Elaina." Mandy repeated. She looked thoughtful. "Lovely, sweet." She replied at last, smiling.  
  
"Yes, Elaina Areida. Will it work?" I asked anxiously.  
  
"Will what work, love?"  
  
"The fairy blood...we can still call her 'Ella'..."  
  
"Oh, dearie, it's already flowing through her veins. Two drops, in fact." I felt a rush of excitement.  
  
"Two? Can she..."  
  
"No, sweet, she can't fly, or disappear, or turn Hattie into a pig." I scowled. For the umpteenth time I wondered what fairies were good for. "Come, Ella, the prince must be informed. I'll go call him..." But before she could, Lucinda appeared.  
  
I gasped. Mandy looked furious. "Lucinda!" The fairy smiled dazzlingly.  
  
"I knew you'd be happy to see me, Mandy dear." Then turning to me, "Ah, child! A little one. The first. Always special, you know." She cleared her throat. "I am Lucinda the fairy, and I shall give this infant the most extraordinary, wonderful gift!"  
  
"Oh no you won't!" Mandy stormed. "Not to her! I thought being a squirrel...and obedient...I thought you learned your lesson! I thought there would be no more big magic! Lucinda, you can't be serious!" The fairy raised her chin.  
  
"But Mandy, I am. This is truly a gift to be treasured! I have..."  
  
"You have no intention of making this child's life miserable before she even..."  
  
"Of course I don't! Mandy," She thrust her head up defiantly. "...this is not a present to bring her misery, it is a gift to give her happiness." She smiled again. "To the little Princess Elaina Areida, I give the gift of perfection!" I stared at her.  
  
"Whatever do you mean?" I asked, suspicious.  
  
"I mean exactly what I say, child. The little one will be beautiful, graceful. Her voice will be one to challenge the nightingales'. She shall be polite..."  
  
The gifts didn't seem so bad...yet. The fairy continued: "always honest..."  
  
Constant integrity may be a trifle too much, but nothing terrible. "She shall be assertive. She shall have compassion, intelligence, be kind and loving and gentle and passive, even in her thoughts. And she shall be obedient." I sucked in my breath.  
  
"Lucinda!" Mandy glared at her warningly.  
  
"Alright, Mandy dear, not always obedient." I relaxed a little. "See," Lucinda said, "it isn't so horrible." Mandy didn't seem convinced. She was still scowling and giving Lucinda a look of pure spite. But the fairy didn't notice. "Farewell, and good luck, my child." She vanished. Then I thought of something.  
  
"Mandy, some of the gifts contradict each other. How can she be assertive, then passive and polite at the same time?" Mandy was shaking her head furiously.  
  
"That Lucinda. She's a thickheaded bumpkin if there ever was one." I heard her mutter, dismayed. I sighed.  
  
"Well, Char should know that he now has a daughter. Mandy..."  
  
"Yes, Ella. I'll go get him." She left the room. I was alone. No, not quite.  
  
"Elaina." I whispered into her ear. "I love you, darling." 


	3. Chapter TwoEnter Elaina

Mother makes me furious. Oh bother...shouldn't have thought that. The room started to whirl. A buzzing pounded against my eardrums. Mother is kind! Perfect! Uh oh. A lie! No! Mother is mother. There. The humming in my ears stopped, and I could see straight again. The room was upright, and my haggard breaths started to calm.  
  
I sighed. Ever since I could remember, my thoughts had been controlled. It was like having a second conscience, no, like having many extra consciences. One for honesty, one for kindness, one for everything "good". I couldn't understand it. Mother wouldn't explain, and Mandy, well, Mandy is Mandy. All I remember is this:  
  
"To the little Princess Elaina Areida, I give the gift..." But what the gift was I couldn't recall. Perhaps it had something to do with the way I was. But no one would talk about it. Anyway, Mother had my new baby brother to worry about, and Father had been a bit off color lately. Mandy was just as mysterious as she usually was. And I, had the winter ball, my "introduction to the public", my debut.  
  
Nothing to look forward to. I had snuck a peek at my gown. It was pearly white, with tiny diamonds sewed into the fabric. The lace was delicate, and the skirt was edged with gold. Most of all, there were flowers. Lilies. Hideous. Oops. Dizziness gripped me. Lilies are beautiful! A lie! It screamed in my head. They're white. They're the things that made me mad at mother, which I shouldn't be! I was about to burst into tears. As soon as I thought that, though, I felt perfectly fine.  
  
Oh, I had tried to rebel, many times, in fact. But the dissatisfaction of complying with the curse was no match for the torture I had to endure for the few minutes I could hold back. It angered me, but that was no use; it only made it worse. I had no idea what to do. If only a fairy could help me...there were a few left in Frell, from what mother says anyway. Now the trouble was finding one...  
  
This is something else now...I dunno how to make the author comment thingy..new to the site...oh well: hope you liked that chapter...this story sounds pretty bland to me, but if you all like it, I guess that's what matters...thanks to the reviewers...a couple of you didn't quite grasp my meaning that I wanted 10 reviews from DIFFERENT people, but thanks anyway...=) 


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